"I'm exhausted." Marinette sighed as she plopped down on Adrien's bed. He turned in his chair, looking over at her from his desk.

"How goes it?"

Marinette rolled in his bed, groaning. "Well, there's like, five contestants left and papa wants me to choose the semi-finalists."

"That's good, isn't it?" She sat up in his bed, holding a pillow against her chest.

"I mean, yeah, it's great, but I'm terrified. What if I make the wrong choice?" Adrien scoffed.

"I don't think you've noticed, but when it comes to designing, you go into this 'trance'," he motioned with air quotes. "And it's like you're a whole different person." She looked up from her pillow.

"You really think so?" Adrien nodded.

"I've known you since..." How long have they been 'family' for? "Forever - do you think I wouldn't notice that quality about my own sister?" She remained silent.

"Well," she mumbled after a while. "I guess you're right." Adrien chuckled softly and turned back to his desktop.

"You guess correctly."

Alya, always the tech-savvy and creative sport, had created the Chatblog. He would have to admit - it was a little cool to have a blog dedicated solely to him.

At first, it was posts about Papillon's announcement, a couple posts of Chat Noir being spotted around the city, and its most recent posts consisted of the most recent akuma attacks and appearances, which have taken place since Adrien arrived at this new world.

Ever since Sparkle came along, Alya let out the theory that Chat Noir is a misunderstood character and that he could actually be a good guy. Of course, he was the good guy, he just had to prove himself. Still, many rejected the idea and supported Papillon. Alya's blog received a lot of hate as of late, but that never stopped her (or those new views). Maybe he would have to reach out to her for assistance.

School has gone back to 'normal', Chloé being her... usual self. Whatever that was in this world. Many lectures flew by, with plenty of drama from Chloé and Alya's bickering, Marinette trying to cease their bickering, meanwhile Nino and Adrien stood on the sidelines.

"All I want is peace." Marinette sighed quietly. "Is that so much to ask for?" She rubbed her temples gently and put her head down on the table.

Alya and Chloé's relationship was a strange one, to say the least, but that wasn't the only thing that had changed within this world. If Adrien remembered correctly, his classmate Rose Lavillant's red strings were tied with a boy named Ali, but it was different in this world.

"Marinette!" Rose burst through the library doors, where Marinette was trying to get in some time to catch up on studying. Marinette only flinched at the sound of her name being called and she sighed internally as the bubbly blonde flew her way. "Guess what, guess what, guess what!" She jumped in front of the dark-haired female. Marinette couldn't help her soft chuckle as she shushed her gently.

"Rose, we're in the library," As if on cue, loud shushes came from around the library. Rose cowered slightly and she giggled quietly. "What is it?" Marinette asked after the blonde settled.

"I found the end of my red string!" She whisper shouted. Marinette's face brightened in whichever manner her tired face could.

"Oh? Who's the lucky guy?" Rose brought her hands to her mouth to contain her giggles, before waving a hand.

"Juleka Couffaine." She smiled and Marinette's jaw dropped. She knew that the two of them were friends since long ago, the two of them being an odd duo. A bubbly sweet blonde, with a goth styled, shy, raven-haired girl with a purple streak.

Nevertheless, she couldn't be happier for Rose. The blonde plopped down beside Marinette, sighing dreamily.

"Oh Marinette, who knew that my best friend would be the end of my red string?" Marinette watched as Rose curled in finger around a lock of her hair, before breaking into another storm of giggles. "Don't worry Mari, I'm sure your red string will come up soon. Maybe somewhere where you least expect it!" Marinette chuckled softly.

"Trust me, no worries there." She waved her hand dismissively. "I'm in no hurry." She chuckled.

Once the night rolled around, Chat Noir paid a visit to the Dupain-Cheng bakery. Plagg was quite the eager one and dropped the transformation once they stepped foot inside.

"Plagg!" The kitten paid no mind to his master, zipping across the room and nuzzling into Sabine's cheek as she chuckled.

"Oh, hello dear." She cupped the little creature to her cheek. "I've brought some camembert with me this time, would you like some?"

"You're the best mama, thank you." He purred against her cheek and Adrien rolled his eyes.

"Weren't you the one who was doubting whether she was trustworthy?" He stepped closer to Sabine, watching Plagg zip towards the platter of sweets and smelly treats she had prepared.

"Keep quiet!" Plagg hissed.

"Oh, settle down boys." Sabine shushed them, pulling Adrien down into a hug. "You two are like bickering children."

"Adrien is the child, I'm like a thousand years old." Plagg commented and Sabine sent him a pointed look that made his tail tuck between his legs.

"You may be a thousand years wise, but you have the personality of a spoiled five year old." She shook her head as Plagg snickered, swallowing a wedge of cheese whole. "I'm glad to see you again Adrien, how is everything?"

Visiting Sabine had become an infrequent thing, since Adrien has suddenly become occupied with his current life. Sabine's main concern was Marinette, of course, while Adrien enjoyed the motherly affection he received; they both benefitted from the visits.

This particular night consisted much of recounting the tales of Ladybug and Chat Noir, their romance and the cruel start to their new beginning. It was emotional rollercoaster for the two of them, a lot of sorrow coming from Sabine and resent from Adrien. Plagg was curled up, napping in Sabine's lap throughout the whole story, his tail twitching as Adrien's anger bubbled.

Their feelings eventually settled and Sabine warned that it was growing late and that Adrien should start heading home soon. "Adrien," Sabine wrapped a couple croissants for him to take with him. "The Dupain-Cheng household is also your home. You are always welcome here." Adrien, now transformed into Chat Noir, nodded.

"Thank you, mama." She nodded, handing him the wrapped bread. She took his gloved hand in her own, looking down at the ring.

"If ever you or Marinette find yourselves in trouble, do remember that you two are always welcome to find solace here, okay?" He couldn't help the smile that crossed his lips.

"Thanks again, Mama." He pulled her into a hug. She smiled and patted his back lovingly. "I'll come visit soon, okay?" She smiled.

"Have a good night then." She turned the lights off and Chat slinked into the night.

A week later, it was the end of the dreaded Agreste fashion project and Marinette was nearly at the point where she was going to pull her hair out.

"The finalist! He wants me to choose the winner!" She paced Adrien's room once more. "I already struggled enough with having to choose two out of the five, and now he wants me to go and choose the winner?" She pushed her hair back, nearly pulling it as she did.

"Mari.” Adrien stood, putting his hands on her shoulders and shushing her gently. "It's going to be okay, you're going to be okay, alright? Breathe." He motioned her to follow his breathing pattern, slowly through her nose and out her lips. He took her hands out of her hair, giving her hands a gentle squeeze.

"Better?" He asked quietly. She followed his breathing method a while longer before nodding tiredly.

"Yeah." She mumbled. His thumbs rubbed circles on the backs of her hands reassuringly and he smiled softly.

"You're going to do great. And if it comes to it, would you like me to be there for moral support?" She nodded, almost too eagerly. He chuckled and pulled her closer, giving her a hug. "You're gonna do great tomorrow."

"You really think so?" She whispered and he pulled away, smiling.

"I know so." He rubbed her shoulders. "So, go take a shower and head to bed. Tomorrow is going to be another day and we will meet at breakfast, yes?" She gave a small nod.

"Okay. Tomorrow. Breakfast." Adrien slowly turned her and led her out of his room.

"Good night Marinette." Adrien spoke up as he gently ushered her out of his bedroom.

"Good night." She mumbled back. Marinette toddled across the hall in a daze, waiting until she closed her bedroom door before closing his own.

After an hour, Chat Noir headed out into the night, going to visit someone new tonight. Landing on a balcony that was empty, apart from a couple potted plants, Chat opened up the browser on his baton and pressed on the web address he only recently got familiar with.

The Chatblog had forums and even a chat window towards the bottom half of the screen. Alya was the creator of the blog itself, so her username was highlighted in the chat description. Signing into his discreetly-made account, Chat sent a private message to Alya. It wasn't long before the curtains started to flutter and the glass door slid open, Alya nearly stumbling into the railing of her balcony.

“Oh my god, I can’t believe it!” Chat flashed her a smile.

“Don’t go screaming off the rooftops now.” Alya giddily jumped in her place. “I’ve got a special favor to ask of you.”

“Girl, you’re never going to believe who visited me last night!” Alya was nearly glowing when they arrived at school the following morning.

“What? Chat visited you last night?” Adrien noticed how she didn’t use his whole name.

“Yeah, he messaged me via the Chatblog and I stumbled out and found him perched up on my balcony!” She squealed. Nino gave a huff.

“I’m cool with Chat Noir, but I don’t appreciate these late-night visits to my girlfriend.” He crossed his arms against his chest.

“Oh babe, are you jealous?” She cooed and he pouted.

“But hey, don’t leave us hanging,” Marinette patted her shoulder. “What did he want?” Alya perked.

“Oh! He asked for my help! He said because I run the Chatblog and because I’m so savvy at my work, he asked me to put a little notification center so any notification of an akuma attack can be posted there and it notifies him.” Adrien silently watched Marinette’s expression while she listened to Alya tell her tale. It was hard to tell what it was she was feeling, but it looked a lot like shock, even jealousy. He was smug, but he didn’t say anything.

“Did you call the authorities?” Chloé asked, always needing to add her two cents.

“Did you get his autograph?” Adrien laughed as Alya rolled her eyes at Chloé and nearly pouted.

“No! I was going to ask for an interview, but he just dropped by and left.”

“I still remember the crazy scribbles on my arm at midnight.” Nino narrowed his eyes at her as she chuckled sheepishly.

“Midnight?” Marinette repeated. The trio looked at her, Adrien growing more amused by the second.

“Are you jealous that the famous Chat Noir visited me?” Alya sang, sidling up next to her. Marinette blushed and stammered.

“I wouldn’t care about that tomcat!” She huffed. Adrien chuckled and put an arm around Marinette’s shoulders.

“Alright, alright. Leave her be, Mari’s stressed out of her mind because she’s judging the winner of the fashion project today.” Marinette groaned as Adrien rubbed her shoulder. “I was barely able to get her to eat this morning.”

“You’ll be fine girl, I promise!” Alya reassured her. “When is the judging?”

“During lunch.” Adrien replied and Alya hissed slightly.

“Ouch.” She patted Mariette’s free shoulder gently. “We send you our support.”

Lunchtime came quickly and both Adrien and Marinette were heading to the Agreste estate. Nathalie greeted them at the front door, letting Marinette know that the contestants were waiting for her at the meeting room.

“Also, your father is in a telephone conference in his office, so he will not be joining you today.” Marinette nearly tripped on her own feet, but Adrien caught her.

“Thank you, Nathalie.” Adrien smiled.

“Your father said that you have thirty minutes – fifteen to examine each design – along with five minutes to come to your own conclusion and choose the winner.” Adrien could feel Marinette shiver in his arms.

“Thank you, Nathalie,” Adrien repeated with a much more sarcastic tone. Nathalie simply nodded, walking ahead to the meeting room.

The two of them walked slower, Adrien trying to boost Marinette’s morale. “You’re an Agreste. You know what you’re doing. You’re not some amateur, Marinette. You’ve got this.” He gave her a firm shake of the shoulders. “Got it?” She hesitated to reply and he rose his eyebrows at her silence.

“I got it.” She repeated quietly.

“That’s right, you got it.” He pressed a kiss onto her forehead. “Now, go in there and show them what you’re made of.” She nodded and turned, taking a deep breath. She straightened and the two turned down the hall towards the meeting room. Nathalie was waiting for them outside, but once she noticed them coming, she headed inside.

Once they made it to the door, Nathalie opened the door for them. Adrien followed behind Marinette, watching how her demeanor changed completely. You wouldn’t be able to tell that she was nervous before this. She stood tall and her expression looked indifferent, one that appeared much like his father’s.

It was two contestants – a young woman with a round face and a sweet smile. Her light brown hair was tied up into twin buns above her head. She was wearing overalls, short legged ones, with a floral print shirt peeking out from under the top. Her name tag read Sarah. The other was a young man, tall and slim, his dark brown hair slicked back slightly. He was dressed semi-casual, wearing an indigo blue button up tucked into black slacks. His name tag read Diego.

The final round was to create a whole outfit that represented the contestant. Nathalie started the timer and Marinette went to Sarah, walking around the mannequin she dressed. The mannequin was dressed lightly, dressed in pale, faded pink shorts that had faux rips with cherry blossom patterns under the rips. The shorts were high-waist and the top was a white crop top with a sweetheart neckline. It was accessorized with a kimono scarf, made of the same pattern that covered the rips of the shorts.

Marinette took notes on Sarah’s design, later turning to Diego’s design. It was a formal attire, a black suit that shone sapphire whenever it caught the right light. There was a beautiful golden embroidery on the vest of the suit that caught Marinette’s attention. It was his own signature that he used occasionally on his previous designs, just like her own. A white button up under the vest and the slacks matching in the same black-blue color.

The thirty minutes passed and Marinette was now sitting at the table that was set in front of the contestants. She was sitting next to Adrien, looking over all the notes from each design. Adrien watched as she silently flipped through her pages of notes, finding it strange to see Marinette this way. Still, it was kind of admirable. Adrien let his gaze wander over to the two contestants, Sarah who looked stressed, tugging on her overall straps and adjusting them. Her nerves were easily palpable, while Diego seemed composed.

The timer chimed with the end of Marinette’s note study and she reached her conclusion, standing. She walked around her table and clasped her hands together. “I want to thank you for joining the project and congratulations for making it this far, however, only one of you can come out a winner today.” Marinette walked to Sarah, smiling softly in front of her. “Your design is cute and bubbly and this is something that I would find myself wearing.” Marinette picked up the kimono scarf in her fingers. “But the stitching on this scarf is messy and rushed. If I were to be an unsuspecting wearer and threw this in the washer, it’d get ruined almost immediately.” Sarah’s smiled dimmed slightly and she nodded.

“Thank you.” Marinette nodded and went to Diego, who gave her a nod and a smile.

“This is your signature, isn’t it?” Marinette lifted the blazer slightly and her finger traced the design. “And you’ve managed to flawlessly add it onto this design as well. How did you do it?”

“Thank you.” He nodded. “I don’t particularly work my designs around my signature, but if it fits, I will put it in.” Marinette nodded.

“There’s a couple frayed strings and you missed a couple buttons, but otherwise, it looks wonderful. I love the color as well.” Marinette smiled, taking a couple steps back. “Once again, I would like to thank the two of you and congratulate you for making it this far.” They both replied with their thanks.

“Sarah, your design is fashionable and very fitting for the spring and summer seasons, however, the Agreste line would not tolerate such flimsy designs. As your project reflects you, it gives me the impression that your performance in the industry will appear to be just as flimsy.” Sarah’s smile started to fade and she started to chew her lip as she nodded. “Diego, your project needs a little more tweaking to reach perfection and I believe that the Agreste company would be more than happy to take you under their wing to achieve that. “Congratulations.” Marinette turned and provided Nathalie with her notes.

“Nice going,” Adrien smiled. He was surprised, to say the least. The Agreste work ethic was really running through her veins.

Diego and Sarah shook hands and Sarah came to shake hands with Marinette. “Thanks,” she muttered.

“Your work is really stylish, it just needs more practice and dedication.” Sarah chuckled, almost sarcastically. Not that it was noticed by Marinette.

“Diego.” Marinette shook hands with him. “Nathalie will give you all the details about the internship. Welcome to the team. I look forward to working with you.” Sarah stormed off after dismantling her mannequin, while Marinette turned back to Adrien.

“Well, how did I do?” Scary good.

“I’m sure that father would be proud of you.” It was adorable how her eyes brightened.

Nathalie went to Diego and started to explain to him the details and terms of the internship, while Marinette and Adrien headed out of the meeting room and out to the dining room.

They were barely going downstairs before they were stopped by someone at the foot of the staircase.

“A child, a child, telling me my design isn’t worthy?” Two matching, light brown buns with color buttons on each. A faded Japanese styled kimono, but not with the full leg length. And two, very large sewing needles. “Marinette Agreste, you’ve messed with the wrong girl.”